‘One Piece’ Creator Eiichiro Oda Provides Update On Live-Action Netflix Series: “They’ve Promised That They Won’t Launch It Until I’m Satisfied”
After Netflix’s infamous mishandling of Cowboy Bebop, fans expectations for the streaming service’s upcoming adaptation of One Piece are abysmally low – so in the hopes of easing fan concerns, series creator Eiichiro Oda recently shared a personal message of optimism towards the live-action take on his seminal manga.
To ease fans concerns, the creator himself posted a message with not only an update on the One Piece live action series but also the executive producer’s personal involvement with Netflix and Tomorrow Studios.
Originally uploaded by Oda in Japanese before being translated by Netflix’s official Twitter account, opened his message by recalling his overall experience serving as an executive producer on the live-action series.
“I’ve been working with Tomorrow Studios and Netflix for quite some time now,” wrote the mangaka. “Even though they understand each of the characters, we obviously come from very different cultures so, when it comes to entertainment, we have different codes, skill sets, and aims, sometimes it could be frustrating for both sides.”
“It felt like, ‘We’re all trying to get to the same place how come we’re not on the same wavelength?'” he added. “There was even a time when I thought ‘is a foreign production possible?!'”
To that end, he then declared, “Now this might seem like it might be coming out of nowhere but we’ve been hard at work this entire time. And now, each and every entity involved is working in sync. We’re finally here!!”
Oda then confessed that, “Considering my expected life span, I believe this is my last chance to bring One Piece to the entire world.”
Hinting that, unlike the manga, he had no contingency plan to ensure the quality of a live-action series in the event of his (God forbid) premature passing, the mangaka revealed, “If we’re going to do it, I want to be able to do it while I’m still active. That’s why I agreed to the live action adaptation of One Piece back in 2016.”
“Since then, Netflix has committed enormous resources to the production,” he explained, before assuring fans, “It was announced that the show will launch in 2023, but they’ve promised that they won’t launch it until I’m satisfied.”
Closing out his message on this optimistic bent, Oda ultimately exclaimed, “The entire cast and crew, spanning various countries are brimming with love for One Piece!!”
“They’re burning with passion and I’ve reminded everyone involved that this should be fun,” he affirmed. “We’re in the final process of finishing all 8 episodes! We’ll be setting sail soon.”
Per an alleged script leak provided exclusively to Bounding Into Comics in early 2020, the first episode of Netflix’s One Piece will closely follow Oda’s original story beats while also expanding on scenes from Zoro’s past only hinted at in the manga.
Netflix’s live-action One Piece is on course to break waves sometime in 2023.
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